24] – On
Tues., Nov. 3 at 7:30 PM @ Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse, 30 W. North Ave.,
Baltimore 21201, Alison Bass presents "Getting Screwed: Sex Workers
and the Law." This is a vivid narrative-driven account of how
current U.S. laws against prostitution harm sex workers, clients, and
society. Bass weaves the true stories of sex workers with the latest
research on prostitution into a gripping journalistic account of how women (and
some men) navigate a culture that routinely accepts the implicit exchange of
sex for money, status, or even a good meal, but imposes heavy penalties on
those who make such bargains explicit. Along the way, Bass examines why an
increasing number of middle-class white women choose to become sex workers and
explores how prostitution has become a thriving industry in the
twenty-first-century global economy. Situating her book in American history
more broadly, she also discusses the impact of the sexual revolution, the rise
of the Nevada brothels, and the growing war on sex trafficking after 9/11.

Drawing
on recent studies that show lower rates of violence and sexually transmitted
diseases, including HIV, in regions where adult prostitution is legal and
regulated, Bass makes a powerful case for decriminalizing sex work. Through
comparisons of the impact of criminalization vs. decriminalization in other
countries, her book offers strategies for making prostitution safer for
American sex workers and the communities in which they dwell. Allison
Bass is an award-winning author, journalist, and professor. A long-time medical
and science writer for the Boston Globe, Bass now teaches journalism at the
Reed College of Media at West Virginia University. Call 443-602-7585. Go
to http://www.redemmas.org.

25] – Meet
at 14th and R Sts. NW, WDC, on Wed., Nov. 4 from noon to 1 PM as local
gardeners, beekeepers, food safety advocates and bee-lovers will swarm Ace and
True Value to ask the home improvement retailers to remove bee-killing
pesticides from store shelves. They join more than 5,000 people that
will deliver letters to the retailers in over fifteen cities across the
U.S. as part of a national week of action. A coalition led by Friends
of the Earth, Organic Consumers Association, Sum of Us, Sierra Rise, Pollinate
Minnesota, Beyond Pesticides, and other allies will deliver half a million
petition signatures to the Ace and True Value Corporate Headquarters in
Chicago, urging the retailers to eliminate products and plants pre-treated with
bee-killing neonicotinoid pesticides. Then walk to the Logan Hardware, 1734
14th St. NW & rally out front. Later walk to True Value, 1623 17th St. NW &
rally out front. Bring a sign and dress in your favorite bee costumes.
Email beeaction@foe.org or
visit www.foe.org/beeaction.

26] – On
Wed., Nov. 4 from noon to 1:15 PM, the Middle East Institute, 1761 N
St. NW, WDC, e is pleased to host Dr. Najmaldin Karim, governor of Kirkuk
province since 2011, for a discussion about the province's precarious place at
the center of the Iraq war against the Islamic State. While ISIS militants
control the western reaches of Kirkuk, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters and local
police have prevented the fall of Kirkuk city and most of the oil-rich
province. Kirkuk hosts hundreds of thousands of internally displaced persons
who have fled ISIS aggression. With funding and support from the Baghdad
government disrupted, the challenges facing Kirkuk are mounting.

27] – Come
to the Kay Spiritual life Center at American University, 4400 Massachusetts
Ave. NW, WDC, on Wed., Nov. 4 at noon for a talk about organized crime in
Venezuela. This event will feature Luis Cedeño, Executive Director
of Paz Activa. Paz Activa is a Caracas-based organization dedicated to reducing
violent crime and enhancing citizen security in Venezuela. Pizza will also be
served. RSVP to kslc@american.edu.

28] –Amazon
Watch, CIEL and
Coalition for Human Rights in Development invite you to a "Green-Bag
Lunch" presentation Real Development Respects Human Rights - Two
initiatives working to ensure that development finance respects human rights on
Wed., Nov. 4 from 12:30 to 2 PM at Amazon Watch / CIEL Conference Room, 1350
Connecticut Ave. NW, #1100, (Above Cosi, Dupont Circle South), WDC. Development
should improve lives and not cause harm. Yet, whether it’s a dam project in
Mexico or an expanded highway in India, too often development projects have
adverse impacts on the human rights of communities, resulting in physical and
economic displacement and degradation to the environment upon which their lives
depend. By the time a community learns about the possible negative impacts of a
project and decides to mobilize, it can be too late.

Two
initiatives, the Coalition for Human Rights in Development and the Early
Warning System, aim to ensure that all development finance institutions respect
human rights. Learn more about how the Coalition brings together social
movements and civil society organizations across the globe to change how
development banks do business. See how the Early Warning System works to ensure
that communities have the information they need to understand proposed
development projects, their impacts, and potential advocacy strategies to
protect their rights. The presenters are Gretchen Gordon,
Coordinator, Coalition for Human Rights in Development, and Jocelyn Soto
Medallo, Senior Attorney, Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL).
Gretchen has 15 years’ experience in organizing, coalition building, and policy
advocacy around issues of human rights and economic globalization. Jocelyn
leads CIEL's work on ensuring that development finance respects human rights
and protects the environment and communities.

29] –Rep.
John Conyers, Jr., Dean of the House of Representatives is hosting The Crisis
in US-Russia Relations, from Ukraine to Syria: Is Congress Overlooking its
Causes and Potential Solutions? It will take place on Wed., Nov. 4 at 2
PM in the Rayburn House Office Building, Room 2237. The panelists are as
follows: Jack F. Matlock, Jr., Ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1987-1991
under President Ronald Reagan and President Bush; John Pepper, former Chairman
and CEO of The Procter & Gamble Company, and former Chairman of Disney and
of the Yale Corporation; Ellen Mickiewicz, Professor Emeritus of Public Policy
and Political Science at Duke University; and Stephen F. Cohen, Professor
Emeritus of Russian Studies, History, and Politics at New York University and
Princeton University. The Ukrainian crises represents a low in U.S.-Russian
relations not seen since the fall of the Soviet Union - and the recent Russian
intervention in the Syrian Civil War is only making things worse. American
and Russian jets flying bombing missions in close proximity to one another
raises the possibility of a military accident between two nuclear-armed
powers. As the New York Times warns, the complicated and shifting
landscape of alliances leaves us "edging closer to an all-out proxy war
between the United States and Russia."

The
majority of Americans never lived through the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 or
the darkest decades of the Cold War - they have led lives without the looming
specter of nuclear war. But the areas of conflict between our nations are
growing - the conflict in Ukraine, the expansion of NATO, Russia's involvement
in Syria, and other lesser issues are driving a new wedge between the U.S. and
Russia. While most would agree that conflict between the United States
and Russia benefits no one, the likelihood of such conflict, as well as the
serious consequences it could bring, is not being adequately discussed on
Capitol Hill. In the interest of fostering more robust debate on
U.S.-Russia relations, Rep. Conyers will convene an informal hearing featuring
four eminent American experts on the subject. All four are members of the
Board of the recently re-founded American Committee for East-West Accord (www.eastwestaccord.com) a nonprofit,
nonpartisan organization whose purpose is to promote public discussion and
debate about the state of U.S. and Russian relations.

30] –
Latin America Confronts the United States is a talk by Tom Long, Lecturer,
University of Reading, on Wed., Nov. 4 from 4 to 5:30 PM in Room 300, School of
International Service, American University, 4400 Massachusetts Avenue,
NW, WDC 20016. Visit http://www.american.edu/sis.
Contact Sarah Riley at 202-885-1623.

31] –You don’t have to
search far to find examples of bad corporate behavior from McDonald’s
Corporation. Workers in its stores, workers in its supply chains and even
teachers and their students have all been exploited by this behemoth of a
company.

Workers
across multiple sectors are waging campaigns to hold McDonald’s accountable to
the people who produce and serve their food and the communities in which they
operate. Come for a discussion about these efforts to bring justice to workers
across McDonald’s global supply chain. Justice for Food Chain Workers: Panel &
Reception takes place on Wed., Nov. 4 from 4 to 6 PM at the International
Brotherhood of Teamsters, 25 Louisiana Ave. NW, WDC 20001. Get tickets at
https://www.flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/Mjc1Mw==.
Speakers will include McDonald’s workers who are struggling to organize,
workers from Taylor Farms, a McDonald’s supplier, organizers from the Fight for
15 campaign and a legal analyst to explain the recent franchising decision that
could make organizing workers nation-wide easier. The event is a
fundraiser for the Food Chain Workers Alliance, of which International Labor
Rights Forum is a founding member. The suggested donation is $25, but no one
will be turned away for lack of ability to pay.

32] –YOU ARE INVITED to take
action on Wed., Nov. 4 at 6:30 PM at the Business Center, University of
Baltimore. Join the fight against the destructive results of mass
incarceration. This is a critical problem in Baltimore and Maryland that can be
turned around. See an award winning film on mass incarceration, followed by a
discussion led by former inmates. Then get down to work and plan for advancing
the agenda in the 2016 Maryland Legislature.

33] –Come to the November
skillshare on your rights as an activist and protester in the DMV area at the
Washington Peace Center, 1525 Newton St. NW, WDC, on Wed., Nov. 4 from
7 to 9 PM. This skillshare will include a basic overview of
protesting laws in the District, the types of laws that are used against
protesters, how to put together legal support/jail support; and, the need for
having a police liaison/legal observers. The skillshare will be facilitated by
Samantha Miller at DC Action Lab, Kaajal Shah at DC Train the Movement, Caleb
Medearis at the DC National Lawyers Guild, and Marques Banks from Black
Movement-Law Project. Participants will refrain from wearing any scented
products or washing with them on the day of the skillshare to ensure
access for people who experience chemical or fragrance sensitivity. Email
Darakshan at Darakshan@Washingtonpeacecenter.org
or call at 202-234-2000. Visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1479746262333156/.

35] – On
Wed., Nov. 4 at 7 PM at New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, 1313 New York Ave.
NW, WDC 20005, join a City-Wide Call for Justice and Mercy with Bryan
Stevenson, best-selling author of “Just Mercy”, the featured speaker at
this citywide event. Individuals, congregations and community
organizations from throughout the Washington, DC area are invited to attend.
The focus of the evening will be on specific actions to create a fairer justice
system and to meet the needs of citizens returning from incarceration. Registerat https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-citywide-call-for-justice-and-mercy-featuring-bryan-stevenson-registration-18843650867.

36] – Get
over to the Landmark E Street Theater, 555 11th St. NW, WDC, on Wed., Nov. 4 at
7:30 PM for the film WE ARE MANY. Capturing the impact and legacy of over
15 million people marching in 800 cities across every continent to protest
against the war in Iraq in 2003, has been the nine year labour of
documentary-maker, Amir Amirani. Filmed across seven countries, Amirani’s
feature debut, WE ARE MANY, has been hailed by Screen International as ‘passionate
and provocative’. The film pulls no punches extracting shocking accounts
from those who started the war, set against the prevailing public opinion, and
charts the birth and rise of the people power movements now sweeping the world.
RSVP to Samanthaelladavis@gmail.com
with the number of tickets you are requesting.

37] – Join
Coalition for Nonprofit Housing & Economic Development, 727 15th St. NW
(6th Floor Conference Room), WDC, on Thurs., Nov. 5 from 10 to 11:30
AM for the next meeting. Some of the agenda items are legislative agenda,
Exelon-Pepco merger and a recap of action ideas. See https://www.cnhed.org/.

38] – The
situation in Syria will be examined at the Palestine Center, 2425 Virginia Ave.
NW, WDC, on Thurs., Nov. 5 from 1 to 2 PM. A light lunch will
be served at 12:30 PM. Palestinians have not been fully integrated into Syrian
society. Politically, they remain suspect and the regime’s commitment to their
well-being is lukewarm at best. Not unlike many other groups in the Syrian
conflict, Palestinians have been caught in the midst of the fighting among the
various factions. Though, some have joined the anti-regime side, most insist on
their neutrality in what they considered a Syrian domestic affair. This
presentation will discuss the latest predicament of the Palestinian refugees in
Syria and examine how the conflict has once again highlighted the vulnerability
of Palestinian refugees in Middle Eastern civil wars. It will conclude with an
assessment of the current situation and future of the Palestinian community in
a war-torn country.

Faedah
M. Totah is an associate professor in the Political Science Department at
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, VA. She teaches courses on
gender, development, and politics of the contemporary Middle East including
political Islam. Visit http://www.thejerusalemfund.org/ht/d/EventDetails/i/54918.

"The
master class has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought
the battles. The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while
the subject class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially
their lives." Eugene Victor Debs